Crimson Red
by IamChristelle
Summary: A young red-head arrives with a dark past. Will the young master be able to protect this red ruby that was entrusted to him? includes an OC. I'll do my best to update as often as possible so please R and R! x3.
1. prologue and chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters except Etoile, her biological mother, the prince and his wife.

* * *

"Good Morning, young master", the tall handsome man clad in formal black tux greeted him with a smile as he served the young boy's breakfast.

"Good morning, Sebastian. What are my duties today?", the boy said as he got up and put on the slippers that were neatly placed at the foot of his bed.

"Well, young master, today is a special day. A cetain letter arrived today and it had "the seal" on it." Sebastian took out a letter from his coatpocket and handed it to Ciel before going to the closet to pick out fresh clothes for the young master to wear.

"The queen's seal... this must be serious...", Ciel opened the letter. He read it intently with a worried look on his face. He put down the letter on the bed and sighed heavily.

"So?", Sebastian asked as he laid down the fresh clothes on the bed.

"Sebastian, get a room ready. We will be expecting a guest. A lady in fact. It seems like the queen's granddaughter is in town and her highness wants us to keep her here."

"According to the letter, she will be arriving here later this afternoon. I better hurry and get dressed then." Ciel said as he stood up to get dressed.

"Of course young master." Sebastian replied

Hours passed and then, horses' clopping was heard approaching the mansion.

Sebastian and the servants, Finny and Maylene, were waiting for the carriage to stop in front of the mansion's entrance. Ciel waited patiently as he sat on a chair across the door.

The door made a sound as it opened. first came Sebastian, holding a trunk in one hand and the door knob in the other. The door revealed the young girl, staring blankly at Ciel as she walked in. The sunlight that stabbed her showed her beautiful red wavy hair flowing from her head to her waist. She wore a black headband that kept her hair up. She wore a black dress over a red puffy long-sleeved blouse. The black lace stockings she wore emphasized her red shoes that was tied around her ankles. Her eyes that seemed epty were an emerald green that made one stare. Her pale skin and her pick lips made her look like a doll.

"Good Afternoon, mademoiselle." Ciel gallantly said as he stood to greet the girl. She looked as if she was just 8 years old yet she is already involved with these kinds of matters.

"Good Afternoon... Thank you very much for having me here..." The girl said in her sweet soprano voice. She lightly smiled.

"I would like to rest for the rest of the day, a lot has happened." She said.

"Of course, come now Ms. Etoile, your room is this way." Sebastian escorted the girl to the dark halls to a room at the and of the hallway.

+During Teatime+

"Her name is Etoile..." Ciel said as he watched Sebastian pour him a cup of tea.

"Yes, And she's only 7 years old. Very young for someone who experienced much." Sebastian said putting down the teapot.

"Well, I guess we have another tough case in our hands..." Ciel sighed

"I guess we do..." Sebastian replied with a smile on his face.

* * *

Chapter 1: Investigation

Ciel went through sheets of papers which covered his whole desk.

"It has been 3 days since she had been here yet no one has made their move yet." Ciel thought to himself.

The door suddenly opened and revealed the butler yielding a bunch of documents.

"These are the records of the Velmonde blood line." He said putting the bundle on a nearby table adorned with red roses.

"According to the queen, Etoile is the only daughter of her second son. It seems like both the prince and his wife have golden hair. Also, as it says in these records, Etoile is not related to her mother whatsoever. It seems like the young prince had an affair with a French woman after their marriage and since his wife could not bear a child, he took the mistress' child in as his daughter. 5 years after her birth, the prince died from a disease and all his riches went to his wife. The wife then started to physically abuse Etoile so the queen took her in. So, a year passed and the wife died in a fire. Though a will was found. According to the will whoever "KILLS" Etoile inherits everything that the Velmonde family owns knowing that the deceased wife was the soul heiress to the Velmonde fortune." Ciel said with a blank expression.

"How ridiculous." Sebastian said with smile on his face.

Ciel continued, "So, Etoile was passed to different relatives but each family that she stayed with perished while she was away mostly because of school. At the age of 6, she stopped going to school and stayed at a house with an aunt at the country side..."

"So what comes next?" asked Sebastian.

"Hmph... Well, after that, someone assaulted the house in the middle of the night and left dead guests, a dead aunt and a half-dead girl. The weird thing is when the girl was taken to the hospital, they found a mark on her back... an odd symbol... When they asked her about it she either she kept silent or she said it was nothing" Ciel lost his words and stared of into space.

"My Lord?" Sebastian asked as he saw the young boy at the verge of tears...

Suddenly, giggling was heard outside the window. As Sebastian opened the window, Ciel turned his head to see the young girl covered with flowers laughing with Maylene. They were playing in the garden. Then Finny arrived holding a watering can filled with water.

"I wonder who saved her..." Ciel said staring at the scene.

"Who knows... An angel, perhaps?" Sebastian said jokingly with a smile

"I admire her strength..." Ciel said as he went back to his papers.

"Should I bring your dinner here, my lord?" Sebastian asked as he walked to the door.

"Yes, It's going to take me a while to finish these." Ciel said as he went back to reading.

"It will be served shortly..." Sebastian said as he left the room.

+In the middle of the night+

Ciel looked through the remaining documents as the half-eaten meal was left on his table. His eyes felt heavy and he drifted off to deep slumber.

Ciel was woken up by sounds of light steps on his carpeted floor. He couldn't react due to exhaustion. As he opened his eyes just enough to see what's going on, he saw Etoile wearing a long red silk robe. She went to him and brushed away his bangs. The girl then took off her robe revealing a black nighty with red lace that showed her neck, her shoulders and her back. She then wrapped her robe around him.

"Keep up the good work, young master." She said with the sweetest smile on her face.

As she turned around to go back to her room, Ciel saw it. He saw it. It was vague but he was sure of it. It was the same mark left on his back. He heard the door close. He then went back to sleep; warm and cozy wrapped around the robe that had the same color as blood.


	2. Chapter 2

+Ciel's POV+

The sunlight hit my eyes as I heard someone part the curtains that hung near my bed.

"Good morning young master." I saw my butler serving breakfast as he took plates from a trolley that he rolled in while I was asleep.

"I remember dozing off in my office..." I said yawning slightly.

"You were, I carried you here when I went patrolling last night. Though, I don't think that this is yours." He said as he showed me a silk robe.

"Hmmm... I can remember it clearly... wash it and when it's dry, hang it in our guest's room." I said remembering the mark clear as day.

"Yes, my lord." Sebastian said as he left to take the robe to the laundry room.

After he left, I started eating the waffles that sat on my plate. Syrup dripped from the chunks of delight as I picked one by one using a fork.

_"This is most troubling indeed. I have a guest in my mansion that is being trailed by assassins, not to mention that she has a certain benefactor that saved her from being torn to pieces by mindless nobles." _

After eating my breakfast, I took my cup of tea and took a long sip. I looked outside and saw the young red-head drawing under a tall tree.

Sebastian came back into the room as I stood up to get changed. After changing into my usual day clothes, Sebastian handed me a book.

"What is this?" I asked Sebastian

"Alice in Wonderland, Sire." He answered.

"I found it on your table last night. I saw Etoile reading it yesterday in the living room. I believe she was simply returning something she borrowed." He said as he took the clothes I wore last night.

"She seems to be enjoying her time here." He said with a sly smile.

"Hmph... I'll talk to her later." I said as I went back to the office.

* * *

+During teatime+

Ciel's POV

I was looking through documents when I saw a pair of green eyes gleam at from behind the door.

"Miss Etoile, please enter. I would like to have a word with you." I said as I put down everything that I was reading and turned my attention to the red-head that stood at my doorway.

"What is it, Sir Phantomhive?" she asked as she walked closer to the table where I rested my arms.

"Please, sit and just Ciel." I said gesturing her to the chair across my table. I have to know more about her. I have to learn how she was saved from the awful experience of being sold to a bunch of psychos.

"Then please, just Etoile." She said as she daintily sat across me.

"How do you find your stay here?" I asked with a smile plastered on my face.

"This place is like paradise to me... Much better than my former home." She said with an angelic smile

"So, I hope my servants are treating you well." I said

"Yes! they are very kind. They are very nice." She said as her hands moved all over expressing the feelings she could not express in words.

"Wonderful! I'm glad that you're enjoying your stay here." I said

"Ciel, you and I both know that that is not what you really want to know." She said not changing her expression.

"You are quite smart, Etoile. Will you tell me what I want to know?" I asked looking at her intently.

"Of course. You're the only one who can actually understand me... " She said as she fiddled with her long red locks that framed her small face.

I waited for the words that would answer all of my questions. Her eyes seemed sad for some reason and her hand continued to play with her crimson hair.

"An angel... talked to me... He said that I don't deserve to be treated that way. He said that it wasn't my fault to be born as a mistress' child... He said that I was much too precious to be violated by those savages. He said that I deserve to be happy and that those assassins that planned on taking my life are nothing compared to what I have become. He told me to take back the happiness that was supposed to be branding me, those horrible nobles fawned over how beautiful my body was. I heard what the angel said so I took the gun on the holster that my uncle used for hunting and I shot my uncle here." She said as she used her index finger to point at her own forehead.

I stared at her eyes brimming with tears. _Such a fragile girl_, I thought to myself

"Everyone looked at me, shocked at what I did. Then, abruptly, a man dressed in black broke in through the window and gave each of them a shot with his silver gun... I guess he was asked to kill all witnesses." She said forcing a smile on her face.

"Anyway, when it came to me, he shot me twice but only on my leg and my shoulder. He then threw away the gun and took out a pretty knife. I liked the knife and since the gun I held was now worthless, I threw it to him. He was such a lousy catcher. The gun hit his wrist and the knife fell. I don't know why... Maybe because of what the angel said... I quickly picked up the knife and charged it at him. What I did sufficed and he fell, bleeding lots of the pretty red that I liked so much." She said giggling a bit as she wiped away the tears that dripped down her cheeks.

I continued to look at her intently.

"I was so angry... I moved the knife up and down and I was showered with so much red... Everyone in that room was red and I was covered with their red... I was so lonely and sad... I wanted my daddy... That's when the angel appeared once again...He told me that everything is going to be okay. He was so beautiful... He had the most soothing smile... But when I assessed his looks, I saw that he had silky red hair and translucent green eyes. He looked a lot like me... He was me..." She said as she let go the locks that fell on her shoulder. She looked at me and relaxed her hand on the table.

"Ciel... I didn't know. Deep inside I wanted to kill them... There's a murderer in me... He told me to kill them... He told me to kill the aunt that taught me when I couldn't go to school... The uncle that read books to me until I fall asleep... I didn't care even if they killed me... They were the only ones that accepted me... I was ready to accept the ugly side to them because they accepted my past... but my ugly side took over and killed them..." She said as she kept her face down, crying tears that no one knew was there.

I grabbed onto her hand that felt so warm. She is not a bad child... Her guilt proved that her innocence is true.

"Ciel, after learning this, can you still accept me even if you know that "he" is residing in me?" She said looking at me with her swollen eyes that looked so innocent. I could not deny that I wished that I was as strong as her.

"Etoile... You were not at fault... what resides in you is something more beautiful. You are not not a murderer. You are strong... "He" is a manifestation of your strength. "He" is not ugly. "He" saved you from people who couldn't control their ugly sides. "He" is admirable. To be able to save you from death, "he" is a hero." I said holding her hand as she looked at me dumbfounded at what I said.

"Everyone has ugly sides but I can confidently say that "he" was not an ugly side of you..." I said comforting the young girl that continued to sob.

_"How wonderful this girl is... If only I was as strong as her, maybe, just maybe, I would've gotten through without having to sell my soul like that..." _I thought as I watched the girl hold on to my hand, sniffing as her body quivered from time to time.

"Thank you, Ciel..." She managed to say those three words as she continued to hold my hand.

* * *

+Night time at Ciel's office+

Ciel's POV

Sebastian entered the office with a tray of food. He looked at me surprised at seeing the sleeping girl on my couch.

"Take her to her room and when she wakes up, give her something to eat." I said as he set the tray on my table.

"Yes, my lord." He said as he carried the girl like how a groom would carry his bride.

"How was your "talk"?" He asked with a small smile on his face.

"I managed to get all the information that I need. What we need to do now it to continue on protecting her just how her majesty said." I said blankly as I started on with my dinner.

"Now, go. She needs all the rest that she can get." I said as I looked at her face. She looked so peaceful as she slept.

Sebastian left the room and I was once again alone. _"An angel..."_ I thought to myself over and over...


	3. Chapter 3

+Ciel's POV+

"Sir, a letter arrived today", Sebastian said as he swiftly made his way into my office. I sighed and directed my gaze at him, away from the book that I am re-reading, "Alice in Wonderland".

He held out the letter and I took it from his hands. I looked at the envelope and there was nothing written on it. I opened it and what it contained was a folded piece of parchment.

Written on it was these few words:

"Thank you. I'm coming for her soon."

"No sender." I said as I put the letter inside the book.

"Oh, nooooooooooo!" A scream suddenly came from the courtyard.

"Sebastian", I conmmanded

"Yes, my lord" He responded. He quickly carried me and rushed me to the courtyard. When we got there, he put me down, I saw Maylene, the source of the scream.

"Mademoiselle! please come down! You might get hurt!" She screamed repeatedly as she looked up at the apple tree.

I looked up and saw a red-head dressed in brown sitting on one of the tree's branches. I stood there thinking of a way to get her down.

"Etoile! I'd appreciate it if you'll get down from there!" I called out to her as loud as I can. She looked down and waved. She smiled the most cheerful smile I've seen from her.

She then held her skirt as if it was a basket and carefully climbed down the tree. Sebastian reached up to her and eventually held her hand as she made her way down.

"Etoile..." I stared at her red hair as I tried to hold back my anger. All she did was look down as she walked up to me. She stopped right infront of me.

"I'm very sorry..." She looked up at me with a sad look on her face.

"What did you do there, anyway?" I asked, feeling a little guilty for getting mad.

She just smiled and showed me a bunch of white flowers in her improvised basket.

"I was planning on making bouquets for everyone using these." She just stood there, quiet. I sighed put my hand on her shoulder.

"We all appreciate your intentions but, I don't know what I'd do if you get hurt." I told her nicely. She brightened up and smiled.

"Next time, ask help from the servants, okay?" I said, she nodded and grabbed Maylene by the hand. They went off somewhere as I looked at Sebastian coughing with a smirk on his face.

"Your being awfully kind to her, young master." He followed me as I walked back to my office.

"Shut it. Good thing it was just a false alarm." I said annoyed at the same time relieved. I reached my office and sat there repeating the same question over and over in my head: "Why 'Thank you'?"

Sebastian stood there near my table and suddenly asked, "would you like some tea, sire?"

"Earl Grey." I replied, lost in thought. thinking of possible reasons for an assasin to thank me. I looked into space and thought for God knows how long.

"Ehem." Sebastian entered serving me tea. "Sebastian?" I called to him.

"Yes, sir?" He replied after putting down the teapot.

"If another demon was out to get my soul, then this demon thanks you, why do you think would he do that?" I asked.

"Well sir... If I was in that demon's place, and the soul was very, very rare and splendid, like yours. I would thank it's protector for keeping it safe for me before I snatch it away from him." He said with a smile plastered on his face.

"Oh, really then... I accept." I said. 

+Sebastian's POV+

"What exactly do you accept, Sire?" I asked sceptically.

"This is basically, a challenge, A game, it seems." He said smiling slyly then sipping some tea.

"What do you intend to do sire?" I asked, picking up the tray.

"I intend to win, of course. And you will be one of my pawns." He said putting down the empty cup. I pick up the cup and smiled at him.

"There is no other role that I would desire, my lord." I said as I cleaned up his table.

"Good. Not like your desires matter anyway. Call me when dinner is ready." He replied proudly.

"Yes sir." I replied as I left the office, leaving the proud little man to himself. His soul will be most splendid, indeed. 

+Ciel's POV+

I heard the door open. I looked and saw Etoile with a smile on her face. She ran to my table and laid out a bouquet of different flowers from the garden. In the middle was the sprig of white flowers from the apple tree.

"Ciel, I really am sorry." She said still looking a little sad. I just looked at her and smiled myself.

"They're beautiful." I said casually touching the flowers.

"Thank you." She softly said to me.

"You've been very kind to me." She said blushing a little.

"And we intend to be that kind to you for a longer period of time, Etoile." I replied trying to assure her safety.

"But, He's coming for me soon..." She said nearly weeping. I was rattled. How could she know?

"What? Who? tell me." I asked.

"I don't know... He said he was coming for me bacause I've been a bad girl... I knew this would happen sooner or later." She was crying. She was holding back throughout the entire day.

"Who told you this?" I asked, How could this happen? An intruder maybe?

"I don't know... I only he-heard his voice from outside the window in m-my room..." She said, still crying.

"Look at me, Etoile." I told her firmly. She looked at me with eyes filled with tears.

"I will not let anyone hurt you. The queen ordered me to keep you safe. I will obey those orders even if I die." I said reaching out for her hand. I held her hand and looked at her.

"Everything will be alright. Do you believe me?" I asked, still holding her hand. She nodded.

"You must be tired. Please do rest. I'll get Sebastian to send dinner to your room." She just nodded and gave out a smile before leaving. She then left the room, closing the door behind her.

"Sebastian" I called him out, instantly, he appeared from the shadows.

"Yes, my lord." He asked with a devilish smile.

"Order the servants to keep watch from tonight onwards. I want every inch of this place monitored. And, I want you to personally keep an eye on our guest and use any means necessary to ensure her safety and to keep her within the vicinity of the Phantomhive home. Also, Our guest is very tired. Send dinner to her room." I ordered Him.

"Yes, my lord." He said as he swiftly carry out my orders, maintaining a smile on his face.

I opened the book and take out the letter once again and I stuff it in my robe's pocket.

"So, the game begins" I whispered to myself, making my way to the dining room for dinner.


End file.
